---
title: 'Lead OT Engineer - Power Conversion at Valar Atomics'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/lead-ot-engineer-power-conversion-valar-atomics-torrance-qad4sh9mynwe'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-30'
---

# Lead OT Engineer - Power Conversion at Valar Atomics

- **Company:** Valar Atomics
- **Location:** Torrance, CA
- **Compensation:** $160k–$210k
- **Posted:** 2026-10-29
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-30
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/valaratomics/jobs/4471559009

## Job description

## About Valar Atomics

At Valar Atomics, we're redefining what's possible in energy. Our mission is to make clean, high-temperature nuclear power scalable—unlocking abundant energy for industry, hydrogen, and next-generation manufacturing. We are a team of builders, engineers, and operators who believe nuclear energy should be fast to deploy, factory-made, and built for the real world. Our first pilot plant in Orangeville, Utah will demonstrate how advanced nuclear systems and fuel fabrication can power the future. Joining Valar Atomics means becoming part of a company where autonomy, ownership, and impact exist at every level.

The Team

As part of the Engineering organization, Instrumentations & Controls designs the systems that monitor, automate, and protect Valar's facilities and reactor technologies. The team develops reliable control architectures that enable safe and efficient operations

## The Role

Valar Atomics is a young startup that turns ambitious engineering into working hardware. Before our third anniversary, we designed, built, commissioned, and operated a DOE-authorized research reactor outside the national laboratory system. That pace defines how we work: learn quickly, make sound decisions, and build systems that perform. Safe operation, disciplined testing, and regulatory rigor are non-negotiable. Analysis must lead to decisions and delivery, and we expect people to take ownership and see their work through. If you want hard problems, real responsibility, and the freedom to build with urgency, bring your judgment and drive to Valar.

Own the power-conversion program's daily OT work plan, team workload, and delivery commitments. Turn equipment, vendor, integration, and test dependencies into coordinated work, keeping the team effective when schedules change. Technical expertise is preferred, not required; people-management and decision authority develop through explicit delegation.

OT Engineering delivers power and rack infrastructure, compute, networks, identity, security, operational data, and industrial software platforms. The FactoryTalk scope covers backend deployment, configuration, integration, and recovery.

## Key Responsibilities

- Sequence OT work around equipment availability, vendor deliverables, integration needs, test windows, and site readiness.
- Assign work, set clear expectations, coach team members, give candid feedback, and address missed commitments within delegated authority.
- Maintain realistic staffing and work plans; resolve competing commitments and resource gaps early.
- Coordinate infrastructure implementation, commissioning support, maintenance, and turnover with equipment and program stakeholders.
- Maintain as built structured cabling drawings for site and power conversion network systems
- Resolve execution obstacles, hold owners to agreed actions, and escalate constraints before they block dependent work.
- Obtain engineering and acceptance decisions and track implementation, testing, and records through completion.

You Will Be Successful in This Role If

- Highly organized, with disciplined task tracking, accurate documentation, clear priorities, and reliable follow-through.
- Calm prioritization when equipment, vendor, or test schedules change.
- Consistent coaching, candid feedback, and fair accountability that keep the team effective.
- Highly proficient in contractor management and leading a team that is majority contractors for a time
- Early recognition of dependencies and resource conflicts, followed by practical action to keep work moving.
- Respect for readiness and acceptance decisions when delivery pressure increases.

## Basic Qualifications

- Direct people-management or supervisory experience, including assignments, expectations, coaching, feedback, and accountability for completion.
- Experience coordinating concurrent technical or operational work involving specialists, vendors, resources, schedules, and dependencies.
- Ability to maintain clear priorities, realistic work plans, accurate status and issue records, and dependable follow-through under pressure.
- Experience removing delivery obstacles, escalating consequential issues, and coordinating handoffs against engineers' requirements and acceptance decisions within delegated authority.
- Sequence equipment, vendor, integration, and testing dependencies with clear readiness and escalation decisions.
- Technical specialization is preferred, not required. Qualified nontechnical people managers are eligible; hands-on engineering execution is not required.

## Preferred Skills and Experience

- Experience leading delivery, commissioning, services, or maintenance work for power-generation or heavy-equipment programs.
- Experience coordinating vendors, equipment interfaces, and site test schedules.
- Familiarity with industrial OT infrastructure or power-conversion equipment.

## What We Offer

- Competitive base salary
- Equity ownership in a rapidly growing advanced energy company
- Comprehensive medical benefits
- Unlimited PTO
- Free daily lunch and dinner provided onsite
- Generous PPE stipend
- High-impact startup environment with significant ownership and autonomy
- Opportunities for rapid career growth and internal advancement
- Direct collaboration with experienced operators, engineers, and industry leaders
- The opportunity to help build and scale transformative energy technology from the ground up

## Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Valar Atomics is an equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable law.

We are committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment and will provide reasonable accommodation as required by law.

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States as a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (green card holder). Salary $160,000—$210,000 USD

## About Valar Atomics

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Valar Atomics is scaling nuclear energy through grid-independent, high-temperature gas reactors (HTGR) for hydrogen production, data center power, heavy industrial power, and clean hydrocarbon fuel synthesis.
- **Entity Type**: Private (total funding $494M–$600.5M, latest round Debt - II)
- **Headquarters**: El Segundo, California, United States (additional location in Orangeville, Utah)
- **Founded**: 2023
- **Founders**: Not publicly listed (key executives include President Muhammad Shahzad and CNO Mark Mitchell)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Nuclear energy / advanced nuclear reactor technology
- **Target customers**: Large-scale industrial users (hydrogen producers, data centers, heavy industry), grid-independent operations, and fuel synthesis plants (B2B, Enterprise)
- **Mission or purpose**: “Nuclear needs scale” – unlock economies of scale by building hundreds of reactors on Valar gigasites, divorcing industrial power from the traditional grid.

## Products & Services
- **[Ward 250 Reactor]**: A grid-independent HTGR using TRISO fuel, designed for high-volume, non-bespoke production. Achieved criticality in June 2026 under DOE’s pilot program. Product type: Hardware (nuclear reactor).
- **[Hydrogen Production]**: Reactors paired with a sulfur-iodine cycle process to produce cheap, abundant hydrogen. Product type: Industrial energy product.
- **[Data Center Power]**: Dedicated on-site nuclear power for AI data centers, targeting AI’s projected 200+ TWh additional demand by 2030. Product type: Service / infrastructure.
- **[Heavy Industrial Power]**: Grid-independent power for processes like green steel and bauxite electrolysis. Product type: Service / infrastructure.
- **[Clean Hydrocarbon Fuels]**: Combines cheap hydrogen with captured CO₂ via a modified Fischer-Tropsch process to create synthetic fuels. Product type: Fuel product.
- **[Modular Citadel Shielding]**: Pre-cast, self-tensioning shielding system for mass-manufactured reactor protection. Production line capable of 1,000+ blocks per year. Product type: Hardware component.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation / Market Cap**: Not disclosed (CB Insights shows valuation as hidden)
- **Key Metric**: Total funding reported as $494M (LinkedIn) or $600.5M (CB Insights, conflicting reports); latest round debt financing in November 2025.
- **Notable Investors**: Palmer Luckey, Shyam Sankar, Day One Ventures, DTX Ventures, Contrary, Riot Ventures (led Seed), Snowpoint Ventures (led Series A), and 28+ others.
- **Growth Signals**: Headcount of 74 employees (+232% YoY, +9.6% monthly); 30 active job postings; Ward 250 reactor achieved criticality in June 2026; partnerships with DOE, San Rafael Energy Research Center, and State of Utah; opened first nuclear site (San Rafael) in February 2026.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Proven HTGR design** with unmatched safety profile and proliferation resistance when paired with TRISO fuel.
- **Grid-independent “gigasite” model** that avoids traditional grid constraints, enabling mass manufacturing of standardized reactors.
- **Vertical integration**: In-house design of reactors, fuel processing (sulfur-iodine cycle), and shielding systems (Modular Citadel).
- **Speed to market**: Ward 250 is on track for power operations before July 4, 2026, under a DOE mandate.
- **Talent base**: Attracts engineers from Ultra Safe Nuclear, X-energy, Anduril, and other advanced hardware companies.

## Strategic Focus
- **Scale manufacturing**: Transition from project-based nuclear to high-volume production through gigasites.
- **Achieve operational milestones**: Achieve hot criticality and power operation at Ward 250 by mid-2026.
- **Expand product lines**: Deliver grid-independent hydrogen, data center power, and synthetic fuels to meet industrial and AI energy demands.
- **Grow headcount rapidly**: Aggressively hiring in engineering, operations, quality, and technical roles.

## Why Work Here
- **Mission-driven culture**: “Hardware is the only thing that counts” – emphasis on building real reactors, not just pitching.
- **High growth environment**: Company doubled headcount in the past year; roles offer significant ownership and impact.
- **Locations**: Hawthorne (CA), El Segundo (CA), Orangeville (UT), and Huntington (UT) – roles span design, manufacturing, and field operations.
- **Work style**: Likely on-site/hybrid for technical roles (e.g., Build Engineer, Nuclear Operations Manager, Machinist).
- **Perks & culture**: Rapid advancement opportunities, exposure to cutting-edge nuclear and chemical engineering, and a team with deep ties to defense and deep-tech.
- **Current openings**: 30+ roles including mechanical engineers, plant operators, quality engineers, finance systems engineers, and technical recruiters.

## Sources
1. [valaratomics.com](https://valaratomics.com/)
2. [Greenhouse careers](http://job-boards.greenhouse.io/valaratomics)
3. [CB Insights](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/valar-atomics)
4. [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/valar-atomics)

## Other roles at Valar Atomics

- [Senior Technical Recruiter](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-technical-recruiter-valar-atomics-torrance-z7bj223qq1ww) — Torrance, CA
- [Mechanical Maintenance Planner](https://feeny.ai/job/mechanical-maintenance-planner-valar-atomics-orangeville-mwjxy0njhar4) — Orangeville, UT
- [Electrical Maintenance Planner](https://feeny.ai/job/electrical-maintenance-planner-valar-atomics-orangeville-grb5ehyrah50) — Orangeville, UT
- [Lead Mechanical Designer, Turbomachinery](https://feeny.ai/job/lead-mechanical-designer-turbomachinery-valar-atomics-torrance-r3k39vc05qys) — Torrance, CA
- [Staff OT Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-ot-engineer-valar-atomics-torrance-cxe2b4djjggd) — Torrance, CA
- [Lead OT Engineer - Reactor](https://feeny.ai/job/lead-ot-engineer-reactor-valar-atomics-torrance-j1akw5rxttr5) — Torrance, CA
- [Director, Nuclear Instrumentation & Electronics](https://feeny.ai/job/director-nuclear-instrumentation-electronics-valar-atomics-torrance-q9xa8aa7axke) — Torrance, CA
- [Director of Electrical - Power Distribution](https://feeny.ai/job/director-of-electrical-power-distribution-valar-atomics-torrance-0vevj7caxtmr) — Torrance, CA
- [Principal Instrumentation & Control Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/principal-instrumentation-control-engineer-valar-atomics-torrance-7ycj57swjsx8) — Torrance, CA
- [Principal Nuclear Instrumentation & Controls Engineer – Hardware](https://feeny.ai/job/principal-nuclear-instrumentation-controls-engineer-hardware-valar-atomics-ywkjtcw44vjd) — Torrance, CA